Volleyball: Ladycats take down Midlothian in 4 sets

The No. 5 Aledo Ladycats took the show on the road following a successful, second-place outing in the recent Granbury Tournament. In their most recent match, the Ladycats traveled to Midlothian to face off against a familiar foe in the Lady Panthers. In that Tuesday night match, Aledo avenged a five-set loss from a year ago with a gritty four-set victory. With the win, the Ladycats (18-2) won their 13th match in their last 14 games, claiming victory by a final score of 25-23, 16-25, 25-16 and 25-14.

After winning a narrow first set, Midlothian rallied with a nine-point win in the second set before the Ladycats tightened up the defense, sharpened their attacks and earned wins in the last two sets by a combined 20 points.

Star senior Alyssa Todd led the charge with an impressive double-double of 19 kills and 20 digs while rising junior Kaelee Berkley added 11 kills and 20 digs. Payton Patrick made a strong contribution up front with 13 kills while Karsyn Evans added two aces and 19 digs. Senior setter Sophie Frank recorded 22 assists, 10 digs and one ace while Kailey Hamilton had 15 assists.

 

Ladycats claim second place in Granbury Tournament

Over the course of three days, the Aledo Ladycats volleyball team competed against a group of solid foes in the Granbury Tournament, which took place from Thursday through Saturday. In the end, the Ladycats emerged from the competitive field with a 7-1 record, which was good for a second-place finish overall.

In their first day on the court, the Ladycats swept through the competition, taking down Burleson (25-21, 25-14), El Paso Eldorado (25-15, 25-19), and Forney (25-16, 25-19). On Day Two, Aledo defeated Crawford (25-14, 25-10), Stephenville (25-15, 25-12), and Mansfield (25-19, 25-18) to move into the champion’s bracket. From there, the Ladycats took down a scrappy Canyon squad in three sets (24-26, 25-12 and 25-11) before they beat All Saints (25-17, 25-18) in the semifinals. The Ladycats faced off against Mansfield again in the championship match, but fell 18-25 and 15-25 having to play a back-to-back.

Star senior outside hitter Alyssa Todd, a SFA commit, earned a spot on the all-tournament team for her well-rounded, all-around performance. Over the course of nine matches, she logged 68 kills, 53 digs, nine service aces, and nine blocks. Junior outside hitter Kaelee Berkley made great contributions as well with 50 total kills, 54 digs, six aces, and four blocks while Karsyn Evans anchored the back line with 87 total digs and 10 aces. Senior setters Sophie Frank and Kailey Hamilton produced for their team as well. Frank logged totals of 84 assists, 20 digs, and four aces while Hamilton had 89 assists, 27 digs, and eight aces. Kenley Hamilton played strong with eight aces and double-digit assists while Karsyn Trott was dominant on the front line with 14 kills and 24 blocks.

The Ladycats will be back in action at 5 p.m. Friday against Paschal and will compete in the Arlington Classic Tournament.